Kevin Barnes is trying to make sense of a country he’s not sure he wants to die in. On Your Fun, the latest record from of Montreal, the longtime architect of indie pop absurdism channels ’80s sparkle and Reagan-era dread into something that sounds deceptively joyful—until you actually start listening to the lyrics. “God, don’t let me die here,” he pleads on “Don’t Let Me Die in America,” a song that name-checks cities he later apologized to on Twitter.
“I just dislike parts of [the country] that I find really toxic,” he explains. “Like how is Tucker Carlson still allowed to open his mouth? How is Mitch McConnell still in power? These really moronic people have influence over our lives.”
Barnes has always flirted with identity—musical, gendered, political, metaphysical—and on Your Fun, he does it with the help of Cyndi Lauper synths, Janet Jackson grooves, and some very unfun explorations of dissociative disorder. “It’s an upsetting feeling,” he says. “Not escapism—it’s more like acute anxiety. Feeling like you’re on a psychedelic trip you didn’t sign up for.”
If that sounds bleak, well, blame America. Or thank it.
“There’s a madness you miss when you go to other countries. Everyone’s chill there. Here, everyone is screaming to be heard. It’s why so much great music and art come out of the U.S. It’s a fucked up place to live.”
Even when he’s leaning into shimmering hooks and ABBA-dusted beats (shoutout to “Gypsy That Remains”), Barnes is layering in pain, mental health reckoning, and cultural Easter eggs for the crate-digging crowd. “My lyrics are like diary entries,” he says. “If I discover a new dancer or artist or author, it ends up in the song. It’s how I process things.”
That includes producing Locate S,1’s album while simultaneously making Your Fun. The two records, he says, “talk to each other. They’re sister albums. Same spirit flowing between both.”
Barnes doesn’t pretend he’s in a good headspace all the time—“Antidepressants have helped”—but when he’s working on music or video art or just layering in obscure performance art references, it’s therapy.
“This is the most therapeutic exercise I have,” he says. “Making things. Creating something out of the madness.”
And somehow, it’s still a party.
Listen to the interview above and then check out the video below.
